Everything You Need To Know About Chatbots

One of the trends presented at the beginning of this year that will dominate the near future for mobile development and for mobile marketing is, without doubt, the expansion of chatbots. But what are chatbots? How to build a chatbot? And what are the most suitable cases for using a chatbot? These are the questions that will receive their answers in this article. But let’s take one at a time.

What Are Chatbots?

Chatbots use artificial intelligence for simulating a real conversation with people. But how is that possible?

How Do They Work?

With the advancements made in Natural Language Processing and with the technology provided by Machine Learning, chatbots are becoming more sophisticated every day. You will notice that the more you talk to them the smarter they get. With a chat interface, the overall experience is similar to a human conversation.

Why Should You Integrate It?

There isn’t a general answer to the main question asked by each business owner: Why should I consider a chatbot for my brand? But there are some guidelines you should follow if you want to discover if it is really mandatory to implement a chatbot. First of all, you must know what your customers have to say about this aspect. If they prefer to interact with your app in a chat mode then you should find a solution to offer them that. Secondly, if the services provided by your company require a chatbot for improving the entire experience then you should integrate it. Finally, if the conclusions for the previous points are affirmative and you have the necessary resources to build a chatbot then go for it.

How To Build One?

The integration of chatbots depends on the type of your business but let’s detail a little all the elements that complete this procedure.

Types Of Chatbots

Chatbots are able to accomplish many functions. We are going to list some of them but with a little imagination, you can adapt their characteristics to more tasks than you will see here.

1. Branded or service chatbots – these helpers are the solution for improving the services provided by companies. They can perform different actions that enhance the performances of each business. There are many domains that encounter the need for service chatbots:

• Customer service to offer answers for clients
• Data analyzing for optimizing marketing strategies
• Gathering feedback for finding client’s opinions about specific products
• Messenger app for maintaining the presence for your customers

2. Informational chatbots – they are used to provide important data for the persons who require it.

Platforms And Tools

Let’s enumerate some of the handiest solutions for building your own chatbot:

• Facebook Messenger Platform is the starting point for every chatbot owner. On the official site you will find many guides and tutorials for making your job a lot easier.
• ChattyPeople is one of the most appreciated platforms for creating Facebook chatbots without coding. You can try it for free to see how it goes.
• In case you want a Messenger bot, then Meokay is the right tool for you. If your target audience is dominated by Millennials then the features provided by chatbots are mandatory in building a relationship with your users.
• If you like Telegram more than any other messaging app then you should know that you can build your own chatbot using your favorite platform.
• For artificial intelligence – powered bots integrated with Facebook, Slack and another similar app you can use BotKit or FlowXO. It is your call to choose the most suitable tool for your company.

Mobile App Integration

It is a sure fact that chatbots are the solution to scale your business. Even if many specialists claim that chatbots will overtake mobile apps it remains to be seen what will happen. Anyway, chatbots won’t rule the world anytime soon. Probably a mixture between the help provided by chatbots to complete the repetitive tasks and the necessity of human operators will be the right balance for the future. Let’s not forget that chatbots don’t have their own brains, humans make them smart through a set of libraries and APIs. For more resources related to chatbots and artificial intelligence check relevant articles published in Chatbots Magazine.

https://www.marutitech.com/why-can-chatbots-replace-mobile-apps-immediately/

Best Uses Of Chatbots In Mobile Apps

Let’s see where we can find these helpful companions. We will present you some real examples to understand better how chatbots can improve the entire experience of using an app.

Customer Service Bots

There are many situations when you need technical advices but there is a special case when you feel better only if you know that “somebody” is there for you 24/7 to discuss your health. This is the reason why Babylon Health available for Android and iOS devices integrated a chatbot trained to ask pertinent questions about your symptoms. If your problem is serious you will be transferred to a real doctor. Now you don’t have to worry anymore about appointments and queues.

Image Source: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/babylon-health-doctor-consultations/id858558101?mt=8

Personal Assistant

Do you need a magic friend that knows all your preferences and finds the best prices and promotions for all the things you want to purchase? Mona – Personal Shopping Assistant is a useful app for those who want to find an innovative solution for their daily shopping. If you went crazy searching for the right outfit, then Mona could be the right answer for you.

Image Source: https://itunes.apple.com/app/apple-store/id935514186?mt=8

Education

Have you ever imagined that an educational app could be designed with a chat interface? The creators of Duolingo thought that the best way to learn a new language is by talking with a bot. It gives you the sensation that your personal teacher is there with you whenever you want. The best part is that it is programmed to increase the difficulty level for more challenging discussions. The app is free on Google Play Store and on Apple App Store.

Image Source: https://itunes.apple.com/app/duolingo-learn-spanish-french/id570060128?mt=8

Feedback Channel

One of the best chatbot you can use for gathering in-app feedback is Doorbell. Enter on the official site and discover all the features provided by this powerful tool when you want to know your users’ opinions. It is available for all platforms and it is fully customizable. If you need it for more than 15 days then you should check also the prices.

Image Source: https://doorbell.io/sdks/android

FINAL THOUGHTS

In this fast moving world, it is important to provide immediate solutions for your customers. This is the reason why chatbots were created. The ones who don’t adapt to the new trends should be prepared to face the consequences. Clients are not willing to wait for somebody to solve their concerns. They will abandon your brand and they will move to your competitors who implemented the latest technology for more improved services. This is really dominated by artificial intelligence from one day to another and we all need to adjust our business if we want to keep up with these dynamic changes.